


The Reality Of Dreams

by Seif114



Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/M, Fantasy, Mystery, Paranormal, Reader-Insert, Reader/Dante, Reader/Vergil - Freeform, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-08
Updated: 2017-06-22
Packaged: 2018-04-08 06:42:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 17,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4294620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seif114/pseuds/Seif114
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dreams. They're nothing more then a figment of imagination that the mind concocts while you sleep right? Well what if there is more to it then that? What if the lines between reality and dreams became so obscure you could no longer tell them apart? In the end which would you prefer? Reality or a simple dream?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Break In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edited 12/13/16  
> -Changed most of the dialogue with the stranger.  
> -Fixed typeo's  
> ***************************************************

The Reality of Dreams  
Chapter 1: Break In  
_  
“There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into another.” –Douglas Everet_

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The ringing in your ears amplifies as your mind is slowly brought back into consciousness. With a groan, you reach for your alarm clock not even bothering to open your eyes. Your hand only meets air and your irritation only grows as the irritating noise continues on amplifying in volume every few seconds. You peel one eyelid open and glare at the annoying battery operated device. 

Finally finding victory, your hand grips the cold metal and hits the off switch before throwing the confounded contraption across your room where you hear it make its final sound as it hits the wall before clattering to the floor. Your eye slides closed to join its twin and you once again embrace the dream world of wonderful sleep. You’re not sure how long you sleep in, but the sound of your mother’s voice rouses you from your dreams. You have to admit, you much prefer your mother’s soothing, soft voice to the noise that is produced by your alarm clock.

“It maybe the weekend but how long do you plan on sleeping in?”

“Mmnnnn…” You mumble incoherently, mind still mostly asleep.

“Come on, it’s already lunch time and it’s a beautiful winter day. Go outside, build a snowman, or go sledding.” Your mother suggests energetically as she steals the blankets off your bed and the warmth with them.

Giving in, you sit up and a yawn escapes you as you stretch out. “I’m too old for any of that stuff anymore mom.”

“Oh that’s just an excuse and you know it.” She smirks. “If that’s not motivation to get out of bed then go hang out with some of your friends and see a movie or something.”

“Fine, let me get up, dressed and ready and I’ll see if anyone wants to brave the freezing cold with me for the simply purpose of pleasing you.”

Your mother ignores your sarcasm and offers a pleased nod. “Before you call anyone, once you’re up, I need you to wake your brother up, lord knows if he had his way he would be hibernating all winter.” She moves to walk out your door but pauses and looks back at you. “Dad and I are going out for a bit, we shouldn’t be long, but before you go anywhere I’ll need you to stay home and keep an eye on your brother.”

“If I have to get up to do nothing then why not just let the both of us sleep?” You complain.

“Because you can’t keep an eye on anything if your eyes are shut.” She lets out a short, soft laugh before disappearing through your door. You hear her light footfalls descend the stairs as you stand.

Going to your dresser you gather up your clothes before heading into the bathroom. A morning shower should not only help you wake up, but warm up as well since your mom stole your wondrous heat when she threw the blankets off of you. You quickly undress, not liking the cold bathroom floor tiles pressing against your bare feet. You step into the tub and turn on the water. Your body relaxes while the water warms up your once cold skin. You scrub your body clean before setting about washing your hair.

Clean and warm, you turn the knobs that cuts off the water flow. As fast as you are able, no longer having the warmth of the water flowing over you, you dry yourself off and get dressed. Another yawn escapes you and you run a brush through your damp hair before leaving the bathroom to set about looking for something to eat. You skip down the steps to the first floor…well, technically it’s the top floor since you and your family live in a two level penthouse at Crown Dawn Resort, a famous five star hotel.

Entering the kitchen, your feet patter across the polished tile flooring and come to a halt in front of the large, stainless steel refrigerator. Pulling it open you are met with a large variety of fresh food, the majority gourmet. Not wanting anything big, you grab a shiny red apple and close the fridge. Taking a bite of your breakfast, sweet apple juice fills your mouth. Deciding it’s time to wake your younger brother, you return upstairs, pass your room and stop at the next door in the hallway; Thomas’ room.

You don’t bother to knock knowing that even if you were to you would get no reply. Opening the door you step into his room which is littered with various sports balls, equipment and decorations. Ah yes, Tom is the athlete in the family. You carefully navigate the small path through the clutter to his bed.

“Tommy, mom told me to walk you up.” You say loud enough to, hopefully, wake him from his hibernation.

“Mmhnnnn…..” He responds with a grumbly moan of annoyance.

“Come on, I’m going to keep bothering you until you get up.” You threaten while shaking his shoulder. This time you get no response. “That’s it, I warned you.” Without warning you yank his thick, plush blanket off and toss it across the room where it lands on a pile of hockey gear. With a yelp Tom bolts upright from the sudden absence of warmth. He glares at you but gets up nonetheless.

“To be fair I did warn you.” A victorious smirk spreads across your lips. With Tom awake, you head back down stairs to the first level, cell phone in hand. You head into the living room with the intent of plopping down on the couch and attempting to get ahold of some of your friends to appease your mom. However, you only make it to the doorway before your stop dead in your tracks, heart jumping into your throat.

There, in the living room, looking out one of the large windows at the city scenery below is a man dressed in a tattered black suit and matching top hat. You slowly and silently dial for the police on your cell phone, your thumb reaching for the call button.

“That is highly ill advised.” The man speaks without turning. He holds his hand out and suddenly your cell phone shoots from your hand, across the room and lands softly within the man’s grasp.

“I must admit that I did not expect to see you again, here least of all. Although I should have foreseen this as a possibility no matter how slight.”

"Who the hell are you!?" You demand panicked. How could someone break in? They'd have to get a key from the clerk at the front desk. Besides, you were just down here a few minutes ago and he wasn’t here nor did you hear anyone break in.

"A better question would be 'what am I' young lady." The man finally turns to face you, keeping your phone in his hand. The man’s face is horribly pale and covered in various scars in all shapes and sizes. Large bags under his eyes tell you that he hasn’t slept in a long time. His long hair which is black at the roots but fades to white at the tips is tied in a ponytail which hangs over his left shoulder.

"Wha-?"

"What indeed." He cuts you off abruptly. "Tell me, what do you know of dreams?"

"If I answer will you leave?" You’ve never had someone break in before and you can tell just by looking at him that this man is dangerous so your best shot is if you can get him to leave and then you can call the cops.

“Perhaps,” He grins unnaturally.

You brush off his unusual behavior. "Dreams are fictional things your mind comes up with while you sleep. Everyone knows that."

In an instant he has you pinned against the wall, his grip tight around your neck. His face is all but brushing against your own and your breaths mingle as you are forced to stare into his raging crimson eyes. If looks could kill.

" _Wrong_!! " He hiss', eyes boiling with the wrath of hell itself. 

He’s going to kill you isn’t he? Tommy will come downstairs to the horrifying sight of your body bloody and broken staining the clean carpeting. If he’s lucky then this lunatic will have left after stealing your life away and he can escape the same fate that is about to befall you. If Tommy’s luck isn’t that good however… A chill breaks out across your body with the thought; the thought of your parents returning home only to find that both of their children had been brutally murdered while they were away.

“You haven't the slightest clue do you my dear? You have no idea how much I want to kill you, right here, right now. Oh how easy and satisfying it would be.” He applies more pressure and you find that you are cut off from your oxygen supply. Instinctively, your hands shoot up to claw at the appendage that holds you captive.

“Then again,” His grip lossens just enough for you to gulp in a desperate breath of air. “After all the grief and trouble you have caused me, my dear, your death should be a slow, agonizing one. Something that I can enjoy after everything you put me through.”

"Let me go!" Your voice shakes with the fear growing ever stronger within you. 

"Let you go? My dear your ignorance is highly disrespectful. Even if you are a different self than you were then, the crimes that you committed against me are… Atrocious to say the least. Crimes such as yours deserve no less than death. However I find myself at an impasse. It would be easy to kill you right here and now, but not that satisfying. No, you need to suffer as I have." Abruptly he releases your neck and you fall to the floor.

“I shall tear your world apart piece by piece and every single one of your waking moments will be nothing better than the deepest pits of hell itself. This torture will continue until there is nothing left of you and you seek me out for the sole purpose of ending your miserable life. The next time we meet, I will kill you. I will accept no less.”

"Please just leave!" You beg.

"Very well, but remember what I said my dear, you will come to wish for my presence." Before your very eyes, the man vanishes like he was never there to begin with. You hear a clattering sound and you look down and realize that it’s your cell phone hitting the tile flooring where the man had once stood.

Without a second of hesitation you dial and call the police. You tell them of the break in and before Tom can even make it down stairs your home is filled with police as well as the hotel manager and owner. After house of questioning and your parents running through the door in a panic, the police came up empty handed. No one had seen the man that you described let alone gave him a key to your floor. The locks for your home on the top floor are among the highest quality meaning that unless they had made the lock and had made themselves a spare key then breaking in would be impossible. Not even one of the countless security cameras had caught even a glimpse of the intruder. 

The police said they would ask the lock company to see if someone there had made a secret spare key but came to find out that the woman who had made the lock to your home died a few months ago, and with no family she was quickly crossed off the suspect list; a list that had only consisted of her. Even after inspecting your entire floor they had come up empty handed. No signs of a break in to be found. To top it off you’re on the top floor, high above the ground so it’s not like someone could just sneak in through an open window.

Despite that the police said they’d increase the security at the hotel, you find it hard to sleep when night falls. Your encounter with the terrifying man replay’s in your mind over and over with every detail clear as day. Sometime around four in the morning your heavy eyelids are no longer able to stay open and they slide closed. Before you know it, you’re fast asleep.


	2. Wake Up Call

The Reality Of Dreams   
Chapter 2: Wake Up Call

_And around the neck of the bottle was a paper label, with the words "Drink Me" -Alice in Wonderland_

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You struggle to open your eyes and when you finally do they open slowly. You vision is blurred and sounds and voices are cutting in and out like a bad headphone connection. You are able to make out the noise of beeping. You don’t remember setting your alarm clock to beep mode, usually it’s not enough to wake you which is why it’s set to ringing. You attempt to reach for it but your arms feel way to heavy and you can only get them a few inches off your bed before they fall back down. It’s not just your arms; your whole body is weak. 

Though your eyes are clouded, you can see colors of movement around you. The distinct smell of medicine registers in your nose and as your vision starts to clear you are met with a clean room with cream colored walls, florescent lighting and white tile flooring. To your left is a row of large windows that stretches the length of the wall. It doesn’t take you long to realize that you’re in a hospital. 

“How are you feeling? Does anything hurt?” A dark haired nurse standing next to the right of your bed asks. 

“Where am I?” You are surprised when your voice comes out weak and cracked like you haven’t used it in a long time. 

“You are at Gatewell Hospital; you were in an accident.” 

“Accident?” You frown. You don’t remember an accident. No, you were in bed asleep. You stare at the ceiling trying to put the pieces together. In the corner of your eye you see someone dressed in white enter the room and make his way over to you where he stops next to your bed. 

“Well good morning.” He smiles warmly. “I’m Doctor Kodaav, How are you feeling?” 

“Weak and very confused.” You answer truthfully. 

The doctor adjusts the bed so that you are sitting up more. “That’s to be expected. Do you remember anything about the accident?” 

“No.” Your frown deepens. “Where is my family? Were they involved? Are they okay?” 

“They weren’t involved, are fine and have been contacted and are on their way.” He reassures. 

“Other than weakness are you in any pain anywhere” 

“No.” 

“That’s good to hear.” His smile fades at a more stern face. “Now, that accident happened a few months ago. You have just woken up from a three month long coma. You had fairly severe head trauma, bruised ribs and a fracture in your left arm. All your injuries have fully healed.” 

Your eyes widen and breathing becomes harder as your mind tries to comprehend what you are being told is true. A coma for _three months?!_ You stare at your lap in thought, eyes not even seeing. So caught up in your thoughts you are you don’t even notice two sets of blue eyes watching you from the doorway. The nurse walks over to talk to them while you try to get any sort of grip on your current situation. 

The doctor turns to greet the two men once they pass the nurse and slowly, almost hesitantly make their way over to stand near the foot of your bed. The doctor holds out his hand for them to shake but the gesture quickly becomes awkward when it goes unreturned by either of the men. 

“Babe?” A voice calls out softly, almost hesitantly gaining your attention. 

Your gaze slowly moves from your lap up until it meets pale blue eyes. The two men who are obviously twins, one dressed in a red coat while the other sports blue. Both have striking snow white hair. The one wearing red has his hair styled down in his face while the one clad in blue has his slicked back. 

“Who are you?” Your eyes dart between the two men confused while your brows scrunch together. They must have to wrong room. But if that were true then why had they gotten past the nurse and doctor? 

Their expressions match yours. Well…the one wearing red does. The one in blue however keeps the stern, unreadable face that he walked in with. “What’s wrong with her?” The red one turns to the doctor not even bothering to hide the slight worry and anger in his voice. 

“Wrong with her? She was in a coma.” The doctor states sharply, clearly not liking the red man’s attitude. 

“As I told you multiple times over the past three months, she had brain trauma. It’s not uncommon with patents who have woken up from a coma and who have suffered brain trauma to have trouble recalling memories or recognizing people or places.” 

“And you can’t do anything to help her?” The red man says frustrated. 

“No. The best thing for her right now is to rest and go about her normal routine. The less stress the better. Her memories may come back over time however there is a chance that they may never.” Doctor Kodaav says honestly. You are only able to just make out the red man curse under his breath. 

“Where are my parents?” Your request draws not only the red man’s attention back to you but a frown on his lips as well. 

“How long will she have to remain emitted here?” The voice of the blue twin is nothing like the red ones’. It, like his stature, is strong, proud, and void of all warmth. 

“She’ll need to be monitored for a few hours but if there are no problems the she can be discharged tonight.” The doctor attempts a small smile but it quickly fades when the blue man continues his constant glare; obviously intimidating the poor doctor. “Well, I’ll leave the three of you be. If anything happens or you need anything feel free to call for the nurse.” 

The tmp tmp of the doctors’ shoes echo softly across the room and fade out the door before leaving you alone with the two strangers. 

“Who are you?” You repeat your question much more determined for it to get an answer this time. 

The one dressed in red takes a seat in the chair to the left of your bed while his twin stands with his back to the windows, arms crossed and eyes unmoving from you. 

“You really don’t remember us?” His tone is much calmer then it had been when he was talking to the doctor. It seems almost sad, lonely even. 

You shake your head. 

A sigh leaves his lips. “I’m Dante; Mr. Sunshine over there is Vergil.” He sticks a thumb at his twin. 

You take a moment to think but your mind doesn’t recall ever hearing such names before. “Sorry, but I don’t know either of you.” You frown. “I just want to see my parents, please.” You don’t have to be an observation expert to detect how much weight and tension your words fill the room with. Dante hesitates and after sealing a quick glance at Vergil you know that the intimidating man has no intention of answering your question. 

“Babe,” Dante finally speaks. Just from his tone of voice you can already tell that the both of you will regret you asking. “Your parents died two years ago.” 

Silence, everything is silent after those words echo throughout the room and into your ears. Dead? They can’t be dead. You _just_ saw them! Your mom was the one who had woken you up this morning before she went out with your dad. They had both hurried back after the break in. They went to bed only minutes before you had. They were both _just_ there. There _has_ to be some mistake. There’s no way they could both be dead for two years. Besides, according to the doctor they were fine and you had only been in the coma for three months. 

Anger starts to fill you. You’re confused, scared and in a hospital. The last thing you need right now is for these two strangers to tell you untruths. 

Anger starts to grow within you causing your brows to become tight with fury. “Don’t lie to me!!” Your raised voice protests against you causing it to crack. “I was _just_ with them. My mom woke me up this morning to go out with my dad. After she left I woke up my little brother Tom. They were all just there. I don’t know who you are or who you think you are but don’t you _dare_ lie to me and tell me that they have been dead for two years!” You glare at Dante who is far less intimidating then Vergil. 

“Take a breath babe,” Dante holds up his hands as if he surrenders. Reluctantly, you do as he says and calm down despite your anger. “I’m not lying. Your old man, mom, Tom and Sage all died two years ago when your house caught on fire and burned down.” 

“Dante.” Vergil glares at him in warning. “This is hardly avoiding stress.” 

“What? She wants to know. What am I supposed to do? Keep ignoring her whenever the question pops up until she remembers it on her own then gets pissed that we didn’t tell her sooner?” 

“The hotel burned down?” You interrupt their staring contest. 

“Hotel? You lived in a normal house babe.” 

A normal, average house? But you’ve never lived anywhere aside from Crown Dawn Resort. You let it slide however when a more important question enters your mind. “Who is Sage?” 

“Your elder sister.” This time it is Vergil that answers your question. 

“Sister? But….but I’ve never had a sister let alone an older one.” You frown and you can feel a headache pressing. “I still don’t believe you. The nurse even said when I woke up that my family was on their way. That proves that you’re lying.” 

“She was talking about me and V.” 

“You two?” You imagine that the look on your face would resemble one of offence. “You aren’t my family. I don’t even know who you are!” 

“Well, you’ve been living with us for three years so I assumed we were all past ‘just friends’.” 

“T-three years?!” You feel like your jaw is hitting the floor. “But I don-“ 

“Don’t even know us?” Dante cuts you off. He leans forward in his seat so that he’s closer to your face. “You like to sleep in regardless if it’s the weekend or not, and will only eat light breakfasts, your favorite of which are apples. You love cloudless days and those mystery TV dramas that you watch Tuesdays and Fridays. You hate cold weather and tend not to go out much when it snows. You’re scared of crowds, narrow and confined spaces. And every night you have a cup of tea while reading some book. Right now, we know you better then you do.” 

Your mind draws blank. How? How could complete strangers know your daily schedule? There’s no way that they could have guessed all of that and gotten everything right. Only someone who’s been around you for a few weeks would have known all of that. Does that mean that…what they’re saying is true? It does sort of make sense then why the doctor and nurse let them into your room. But….if what they speak of is the truth then….that means your family really is dead. 

Realization hits you like a speeding truck trying to outrun the cops. Tears swell in your eyes before falling.


	3. Bad Dream

The Reality of Dreams   
Chapter 3: Bad Dream

_“How do you run from what’s inside your head?” –Alice in Wonderland_

__________________________________________________________________ 

Your eyes shoot open, and you sit up with a startle. It takes a few moments of frantically looking around before you realize that you’re back in your room at the hotel. Sliding out of bed, you cross the room to your dresser and get dressed. 

That was a defiantly some freaky nightmare. Your parents and brother dead? Your house burned down? And then there were those two men who claimed to know you; who claimed that you had lived with them for three years. 

A sense of relief washes over your heart. It was just a dream-no-a nightmare. 

Fully dressed, you grab your cellphone noticing a missed message. 

_‘On my way, be there in fifteen minutes.’ –Lilly_

You completely forgot that you had made plans to help her look for a new apartment today. A glance at the clock informs you that you received this text seventeen minutes ago. Well…crap. You dart out of your room and down the hall to the bathroom. You don’t have time for a shower, so you settle on washing your face. Feeling at least slightly refreshed, you make your way down the stairs where you skid to a stop in the kitchen looking for a quick bite. 

A bright red apple catches your eyes. Just as you take a bite of the fruit, a knock sounds at the door. On your way to answer it, you pull on your coat as you pass your parents in the living room. 

“Going out with Lilly for the day.” 

“Have fun and be careful.” You hear them murmur from their faces buried in their computers. Working no doubt. After all, living in the penthouse of this nice hotel is far from free. 

“Will do.” 

You open the door to be greeted with Lilly’s smiling face filled to the brim with excitement. Her current apartment is crap and most of it is held together with duct tape and chewing gum. There’s no hot water and the roof leaks, occasionally even when it’s not raining which makes you wonder what exactly it is that is dripping from her ceiling. What’s the phrase? Ignorance is bliss? 

“You over slept again.” Her smile twists into a knowing grin like she caught you with your hand in the cookie jar. 

“Yeah yeah,” You shut the door behind you and the two of you start off down the hall towards the elevator. “Get off my back. I didn’t exactly get the most restful night sleep. Weird nightmare.” 

“I’m actually not overly surprised. I think it’s common to have trouble sleeping after a break in. Did they ever catch the guy or find out who he was?” 

The elevator doors close sealing the two of you inside the metal box. “No,” You shake your head with a frown. “He’s not on any security tapes and no one remembers seeing him walk into the lobby. It’s like he just appeared in my living room out of thin air.” 

“See, this is why you had that nightmare. Talk about creepy.” Lilly’s brows scrunch together in concern. 

The doors open to the lobby with a soft ‘ding’. There are a few people sitting in chairs or couches drinking coffee with either a newspaper or some electronic device that has internet connection. Their focus solely on their own thoughts leaves them blind to the world around them. Like brainless zombies. You’re parents really aren’t any different, but you have almost completely convinced yourself that your parents do it for you and Tommy. 

Leaving the Crown Dawn Resort, both you and Lilly are unwelcomely greeted by a gust of freezing air. Winter can just go die somewhere for all you care. You hate it, and its frigged cold. You are quick to forget about the bitter cold when the heated inside of Lilly’s care greets your now red face. You embrace the warmth like a comforting hug. 

“So where’s this place at?” You question as Lilly pulls the car out onto the busy city street. 

“Normally, about fifteen minutes from here, but with all this traffic and snow I have a feeling it’ll be closer to a half hour.” 

“Well at least it’s warm in here.” You all but sing. It could take two hours to get to this place and you wouldn’t care. A nice warm, quiet ride with your best friend is just the thing you need to take your mind off that intruder and nightmare you had last night. 

Unfortunately the long quiet ride also gives your mind to much time to think and you find your thoughts drifting back to what the intruder told you. 

_"What indeed." He cuts you off abruptly. "Tell me, young miss, what do you know of dreams?"_

You brush off his unusual behavior. "Dreams are fictional things your mind comes up with while you sleep. Everyone knows that." 

"Wrong!!" He hiss' angrily, now glaring at you. "Wrong! Literally any answer aside from that would have been acceptable." 

You don’t even register your teeth lightly gnawing on your lip as you blankly stare out the window lost in your thoughts. Who breaks into someone’s home then asks such a bazar question like that? He became completely infuriated when you told him what dreams are then deemed your response wrong and all but damned you for it. Even now you don’t see any other answer to his question and you sure as hell don’t see how you were wrong unless he was seeking some long specific answer. But if that were the case then why would he have said that any other answer aside from what you said would have been acceptable? If dreams aren’t just fictional images and scenarios made up by someone’s subconscious while they sleep, then what are they? If they’re not fictional then are they real? 

Sure your nightmare last night seemed so real to the point of it being horrifying, but it was just a dream; it wasn’t real and to prove it you woke up in your bed like always completely unharmed and with your family well and alive. Perhaps you’re just thinking too hard on it. They guy was clearly crazy and again you remind yourself that he broke into your home just to ask that ridiculous question then disappear. You’re just still rattled up from everything that’s happened. Like Lilly said, it’s common to have nightmares after someone breaks into your home. It takes a piece of security away. The best thing to do is to move on, forget about that weird nightmare and hope that they catch the loon who broke in. 

You snap out of your thoughts when Lilly pulls the car into a parking lot surrounded by multiple large brick buildings. The area seems nice enough; kids play in a small fenced in park throwing snowballs and chasing each other, while their parents huddle together and chat. With the car safely parked, the two of you step outside and brave the cold as your feet carry you through the piled up snow towards the building holding the main office where you are to meet the landlord. 

Despite your best efforts to pay attention to what Mike, the landlord and Lilly are talking about you find that your mind keeps drifting back to not only the break in but your nightmare as well. When was the last time you even had a nightmare? One? Two years ago? You don’t even remember what it had been about. 

Aren’t dreams usually a collection of things caused by your subconscious? Normally dreams are about something familiar; though that something most of the time is warped and vague. People dream about familiar places, people or even similar situations that they’ve been in before. If that’s true then why was so much about your nightmare so…different? 

You’ve never been in a hospital before much less a coma. In fact, no one you know has ever been in a hospital. The doctor and nurse were complete strangers in face, name, voice and even personality. As were those two men. If you met anyone remotely similar to those two you would remember the experience. Snow white hair and those crystal blue eyes; one warm and lighthearted the other cold and calculating. Is it possible that- 

“Hey, are you listening to me?” Lilly’s voice snaps you out of your thoughts and you turn to meet her pouting face. 

“Sorry, I was thinking about something. What’d you say?” A quick glance around and you discover yourself seated back inside Lilly’s warm car. 

“I said what did you think about the apartment?” 

The apartment? Had you really already looked at it? You remember Lilly talking to the landlord. Were you truly so deep in thought you were like a zombie; completely unaware of your surroundings. You can’t just tell Lilly that. She was so excited about this place and looked forward to checking it out with you. 

“It was pretty cool.” You lie. Then again is it truly a lie? For all you know it could have been an amazing place. 

“I like the furniture and the location but the price is a little high and that landlord seemed kind of creepy. I’ll have to think about it.” 

The ride home is shorter than it had been on the way to check out the apartment thanks to hard working snow plows and less traffic on the roads. Lilly drops you off in front of your hotel before heading home herself. Mindlessly you make your past the people to the elevator; your mind to in thought to even acknowledge your hand pressing the button to your floor. 

Last night’s nightmare and break in play in your head on repeat. Questions fill your mind, most of which you even admit are dumb things to ask or wonder about. It was just a nightmare brought on by a traumatic experience. Nothing more. 

With a frustrated sigh, you enter your home and your feet carry you upstairs to your room. You collapse on your bed happy for the calm quiet. The silence allows you to try to clear all this nonsense out of your mind. It was just a silly bad dream, one that is very unlikely to ever occur again. 

Without realizing it, your eyes grow heavy and slowly slide closed. In the comforting peace of your warm bed, you fall asleep.


	4. Down The Rabbit Hole...

The Reality Of Dreams   
Chapter 4: Down The Rabbit Hole…

_“In another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again.” -Alice in Wonderland_

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Your eyes, heavy and tired, open upon hearing soft noises around you. You find yourself looking up at a clean white ceiling as the smell of antiseptic fills your nose. Your brows scrunch together in confusing. You sit up only to find the task difficult and fall back down. Trying once more, you successfully manage to sit up in your bed; and discover that it’s not your bed at all. Nor are you in your bedroom. 

Oh no no no. Your eyes dart around the clean white hospital room. You find the tiniest bit of relief in discovering that you’re alone in the room, though the door is half open and now and then you see nurses or doctors walk past in the hallway outside. Your eyes turn to the windows opposite the door. The morning sun shines down on a fairly large city, reflecting off the piles of white snow. You find that the city, like everything else here, is unrecognizable. 

No, not this nightmare again. You don’t want to dream about a place where your family is dead. You want to wake up. Please just wake up! 

Movement at the door gains your attention and you turn to see the same doctor as last time you had this nightmare walk in. What was his name again? 

“Good morning.” He smiles warmly, coming to a halt next to your bed. “Good news is that your discharge papers are all filled out. Let me disconnect your IV and heart monitor and we can send you on your way. Your family has a car waiting downstairs and everything.” 

Home? What is home here in this nightmare? “I don’t know what that home is.” You frown. 

Doctor Kodaav gets to work on disconnecting you to the heart monitor. “That just means you get to discover it again.” 

“Your body is still rather weak. It’s nothing to be to alarmed about and normal for waking up from a coma. Start off with just some light, short, walks to help get your body back up to speed, and then you can do more. The important thing is to build up your strength slowly and not to push it. To help you get around better I got you a cane; it’s already loaded into your car. It’s not fashionable, but it’ll help you a lot so make sure you use it.” Heart monitor fully disconnected, next he carefully takes hold of your arm to begin removing you IV. 

You feel the small sharp pricking pain as the IV slides out of your arm. “Now for your diet, since your body won’t be used to full meals, start off with eating small light meals and you can slowly get back to eating larger meals. Right now if you eat too much your stomach won’t be able to handle it.” 

A bandage replaces where the IV had pierced your skin moments before. “It’s not uncommon to have trouble remembering things or being confused after waking up from a coma. I know you said you didn’t recognize your family or remember your home but you may also find it difficult to remember smaller things as well. The biggest thing is to avoid stress. The more stressed out you are the harder it may be to remember things. Just give it some time and we’ll see if any of your memory comes back. It’s one of those things where you just have to wait and see. Your family has been fully informed of all of this as well.” Doctor Kodaav smiles. “Any questions you have?” 

“I have a lot of questions but from what you say I’m just going to have to wait and see for the answers.” You admit. 

Doctor Kodaav chuckles lightly. “Well if you think of anything or if you have any pain or any concerns just call my office. You have a checkup appointment scheduled for two weeks from now, if you have any pain or anything then I want you to come in immediately.” 

You nod. 

“Well then, let’s get you out of those hospital robes so you can get out of here.” He motions to a pile of clothes folded neatly on a chair you hadn’t noticed between your bed and the window. “One of your family members had dropped those off for you while you were sleeping earlier. I’ll leave to let you get changed then be back to take you downstairs.” 

You watch as the doctor leaves, closing the door behind him. Alone once more, you try to wrap your mind around everything. This is just a nightmare, but damn this is the realist nightmare you’ve ever had. Everything seems so real. Even your body is weak and tired almost as if you had woken up from a three month coma. 

You find it odd though. In most dreams, nightmares included, once you discover that you’re dreaming aren’t you able to control your dream? Make whatever you want to happen occur? Then why can’t you make your mom, dad and Tom appear? 

Thoughts aside, you decide it best to get dressed. Dream or not you don’t want the doctor to come back while you’re in the middle of changing. You attempt to get out of bed, only to find that your legs are weak and you don’t trust them to hold your weight. With no other option, you do your best to awkwardly get dressed in bed. 

The clothes given to you, you have never seen before. However you find that they are warm, soft and comfortable. Whoever left them for you took into consideration the fact you’ve been in a hospital and would be more appreciative of comfort rather than style. 

Just as you lace up your shoes and pull on your coat Doctor Kodaav returns with a wheelchair that he parks near your bed. “I’ll have to take you downstairs in the wheelchair; it’s hospital policy. 

You find that you start to grow nervous as you nod. Doctor Kodaav is easily able to get you from your bed to the wheelchair. As he wheels you down the hall towards an elevator your mind is in a rush and you feel the beginnings of a headache. He said your family is down there waiting for you. Does he mean those two men? You don’t want to go home with them. You don’t even have a home with them. You have no clue who they are or where they plan to take you. The elevator doors open to the lobby and you feel like your nerves are about to burst out of your chest. You remind yourself to breath and stay calm; that this is only a nightmare and that you’ll eventually wake up in your bed at the hotel. 

Your fears are confirmed when you eye a head of white hair next to the door that doesn’t belong to the elderly. A set of baby blue eyes locks onto you as you approach. Between the two of them, you would rather be greeted by him rather than his twin. The man clad in red offers a grin your way and his eyes are filled with lighthearted warmth. If you have to go with white haired men, you would rather deal with the carefree red one vs the intimidating blue one. 

Come to think of it, what were their names again? Oh what does it matter? This whole situation is terrifying and sure as hell is not avoiding stress. You’re half tempted to knock yourself into another coma if you don’t wake up from this nightmare soon. Come on alarm clock, you can go off anytime now. Actually now that you think of it, had you even set your alarm clock? What if you never wake up? What if this is some type of hell that you got banished to for not holding the elevator so that person late to work had at least a chance of making it on time? 

“Nice wheels babe,” The white hair, red clad man greets lightly. “Ready to break out of this joint?” 

You at least attempt a small smile; well you think about attempting one anyways. Instead all you can manage is a look of unease which the man clearly picks up on. The air is quickly filling up with tension so thick you could cut it with a knife. Not able to take it any longer, you look away and so your vision if filled with your hands on your lap. Doctor Kodaav says something you don’t catch. Even as you are wheeled out of the hospital and towards a car, your eyes remain locked on your lap. If you look up at the world you fear you’ll forget it’s a nightmare; you fear that you will start to fall for this hallucination. 

Your wheelchair comes to a halt next to the car’s passenger door. The man in red opens the door while Doctor Kodaav helps you up. You with the Doctor’s help you manage to stand, however when you go to move to twist your body to sit in the car you stumble from a combination of weakness in your legs and loss of balance. The ground rushes up from beneath you, however it never reaches you. It takes a second or two for your mind to realize that the red man’s arm is wrapped around your waist, supporting you and preventing you from kissing the concrete ground. You steal a glance up at him, but avert your eyes almost immediately when they meet his gazing at you. 

With the man’s help, you successfully manage to make it into the car seat without further almost-accidents. The door clicks shut, the Doctor says a final encouraging farewell while the man gets in the car, then the car roars to life and next thing you know you’re on your way to who knows where with this complete stranger in this bazar nightmare all the while you’re still hoping your alarm clock will pull through.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 is up and ready for your eyes to eat. :D   
> It's a little more interesting than the previous chapter.
> 
> If you guys haven't picked up on the rhythm of this story yet: You go to bed, have a dream, only way to wake up from said dream is to go to sleep in it, you wake up the next morning, go to bed, have a dream that takes place the next day as the previous dream, wake up from the dream by sleeping in it, ect, ect. But the 2 questions are: "Which is reality and which is the dream and how much of your sanity will you loose to answer that question?" 
> 
> Also, as a heads up, most of you know that these updates are the start of me really getting back into writing. (It's been a long while since I wrote) because of this the quality maybe a little lower than my other stories (such as Fate) Also, I'm not very good or comfortable writing Dante(I can write Vergil in my sleep) so this is story is also me trying my damn hardest to get into Dante's head. My hope is that the more into this story I get the easier he'll be to write (after all starting off Vergil was hell for me to write) However until I get Dante down, I apologies if he seems a little(or a lot) out of character. (Dante tips and/or suggestions are always welcome) My story Fate got me over my fear of fight scenes so my 2 goals for this story to help me improve as an author is to get Dante's personality down to where he'll be just as easy for me to write as Vergil is. And for me to get over my fear of writing lemons(calm down ya pervs,the lemons will be much, MUCH later on in the story) 
> 
> Thank you! With love and pizza, -Seif Cad


	5. ...Around the Corner...

The Reality Of Dreams  
Chapter 5: …Around The Corner…

_“Have you guessed the riddle yet?” The Hatter said turning to Alice again._  
_“No, I give up.” Alice replied. “What’s the answer?”_   
_“I haven’t the slightest idea.” Said the Hatter._  
  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The warm car offers no comfort to you admits the cold winter day. Or perhaps it’s just the company. You tense up more and more in the red man’s presence as minutes and snow covered streets pass by. 

“You can breathe babe,” The man breaks the silence once it becomes too much. “Nothing to be all tense over.”

You glance over at him, semi-relieved not to meet his eyes this time. “I woke up in a hospital, in a strange city, and now I’m driving through said strange city in a car with a complete stranger going who knows where.” You’re voice becomes stern as you grow angry. “So don’t you dare tell me that there’s ‘nothing to be all tense over’. You said my parents were dead, but why should I believe you? You could have lied just so you could kidnap me and hold me for ransom.”

“You think I’m kidnaping you?” His tone is light, almost amused by your reasoning. 

“That’s exactly what I think!” Your brows scrunch as you glare at him. 

“Well then,” The man swerves into the curb lane, almost hitting another car who blares their horn. The car comes to a halt next to the curb. There’s a click of the door locks opening. Blue eyes stare at you from the driver’s seat. “Even if you don’t remember me, you do know me. No one is going to force you to do something you don’t want to. If you want to get out, go for it, but then you’ll really be alone. Or you can trust that I’m telling the truth, we can go home and order a pizza. The choice is yours.” 

Your hand darts out and grabs the door handle but freezes before you can pull it and push the door open. You’re scared, lost and have no idea what is going on. You want to open the door and go, run away and find your parents. However despite how afraid you are, it’s not necessarily of him. Yes he is intimidating, though not as much as his twin, but you have no fear of him even if you want to. Your fear comes from so many unknowns thrust upon you all at once with no clue of where to turn. Yes, you want to open the door and run away. But in the back of your mind you can hear a soft whisper telling you that doing so would be a mistake, that right now you have to stay with these men and trust them. After all, if he really was a kidnapper, then he wouldn’t give you such an opportunity to escape? 

Hesitantly, still feeling his eyes on you, your hand lets go of the door handle and makes its retreat back to your lap. You don’t look at him until the car pulls away and is once more heading to who knows where. 

A few more minutes of driving and you come to a desertion. If you are going to be stuck here then you might as well try to figure out a thing or two. Like his name. That’s a good start; after all you can’t really just keep calling him ‘red guy’. 

“You’re name,” You start, your voice quiet from your building nerves. “You told me but I forgot it.”

Eyes glance to you curiously before returning to the road. “Don’t sweat it; you haven’t exactly had a good day. Name’s Dante.”

“And that other man from yesterday? He’s your brother?”

“Yeah, Vergil, unfortunately I’m stuck with him. Tried to give him away a few times but no one would take him.”

“Where is he now?”

“Don’t tell me you’re disappointed he’s not here? After all I’m a much better looking escort than him.” 

“But you’re twins aren’t you?” A small giggle leaves your lips that surprises even yourself.

“Yeah twins, yet I got the looks and he got a stick shoved up his ass.” A grin starts to form on Dante’s lips. “To answer your question, he’s out on a job.”

Where could people like them work? Now that’s an intriguing thought. You can’t see them sitting in some cubical or working at a grocery store. “What type of work do you both do?”

The tension makes its ugly return. Okay, so their work is a touchy subject it seems. “You could say we get rid of unwanted pests.” 

“Like exterminators?” If that’s the case you can kind of understand where the tense atmosphere came from. It’s not exactly a glorious job that anyone wants to hear details about.

“Something like that, yeah. Anything else babe?”

You bite your lip in thought. “This city, I don’t recognize it at all.” Perhaps changing the subject well help ease things.

Like you had hoped, the tension fades and the more relaxed atmosphere returns. “Elanay, it’s not the best place, but I’ve been in worse shit holes.” 

“I’ve never heard of Elanay City before.” You make a mental note to remember its name. 

Dante turns the car in a wide alley situated between two tall brick buildings. Straight ahead lays yet another brick building that is sandwiched between the two creating a dead-end. Unlike its neighbors, the building appears to be much more run down. The front doors are battered and look like they’re hanging onto their hinges for dear life. The two stone steps leading up to a tiny matching porch has chips and cracks running through them; one corner has even crumbled away from existence entirely. On either side of the front doors are plain square windows that are so filthy you can hardly see though them at all. However what is most eye-catching about the place is what rests above the door. A large red sign spells out the words ‘Devils Never Cry’. 

The car comes to a halt, close enough to the steps where you won’t wear out your weakened body. You are only vaguely aware of the engine dying and the sound of a car door closing, to engrossed in staring down the building in front of you. Surely this can’t be your new home? This is just a quick stop right? Dante had said that his brother, Vergil, was working. Perhaps this is their business and he just wanted to stop to talk to his brother? Then again if this place really is a business then you are amazed that it remains open given its rundown appearance. Exterminators or not, there is no way anyone would willingly walk into such a place seeking help of any sort. The building looks like it’s just waiting to come crashing down from a strong wind. 

You jump slightly, startled when your door suddenly opens. Smiling, Dante offers you his hand to assist you out of the car. Part of you wants to refuse the help, but then again if you’re going to be staying with this strange man then, dream or no dream, you don’t want to piss him off by being rude when he is only trying to help. With a reluctant sigh, you slide your hand into his glove covered one and he easily pulls you from the car seat. His hand remains in yours for a moment or two, making sure that you are steady enough to stand on your own without toppling over. 

“Here we are, home sweet home.” Dante leads you up the few steps to the front doors before opening them for you. 

Three steps are all that you take inside before you freeze sill as a statue in place. Oh he has got to be kidding. _This_ place is where you’ll be living? This is either some sick joke or this truly is the worst nightmare you have ever had. The flooring, old and wooden, is coated in dirt to the point where you can see boot prints trailing across the room. A layer of dust covers everything aside from the bad smell in the air. 

Across the room sits two desks side by side. The one on the left is littered with old pizza boxes, empty beer cans and magazines. The only things on the desk that aren’t trash are an older looking phone and a small picture frame that sits at the left corner. The desk to the right is a stark comparison of its neighbor. The top of it is cleared of everything aside from a neatly stacked pile of papers and a thick, old looking book. 

A single door on both sides of the two desks reminds you of bookends. The door to the right is opened enough for you to make out what looks like a kitchen, no doubt in the same decrepit state as the rest of the building. Next to the other door, tucked under the stairway, sits a warn leather couch and small coffee table of which you wouldn’t be surprised if it’s being held together with duct tape. 

To your left is probably the least damaged piece of furniture in the room, a pool table. On your other side, resting in the corner by the front window is a severely abused jukebox. If the thing still works at all then it’ll be a miracle. You glance up the worn wooden steps to see them lead to a door. If this is only one room and it’s _this_ bad then you shudder to think what the rest of the place is like. You won’t be surprised to find bugs in your bed and a rat or two in the bathroom. 

Please, oh please, _oh please_ wake up from this nightmare soon.

“It’s been hell trying to keep the place clean while you had your little nap.” Dante, as if sensing your unease, tries to calm your nerves. “You have any idea how hard it is to get V to pick up a broom? I gave up after he tried to impale me on it.”

“I really live here?” You frown still holding out hope that this is just a sick joke.

“What you still think that I kidnaped you?” He raises a brow at you.

That’s an answer you would rather not voice given how he reacted last time. 

Much to your relief he seems to let the unanswered question go. “Now, how about that pizza?” Dante walks past you towards the cluttered desk.

Pizza doesn’t sound that great, but given how hungry you are it will have to do. You don’t know this man well enough to ask for anything other than what he is willing to offer. Aside from food you just really want to be alone right now. Being around a strange man is weird enough, but being in this filthy place and having no idea where you or what the hell is going on is overload. You need time to sort things out without strange men talking or staring at you. If you truly do live here then you should have a room right? Hiding away in there until the pizza arrives sounds like the best option at the moment; perhaps even retreating to it for the remainder of the day once you have eaten.

This while situation is awkward but if you don’t ask him then you’ll be stuck in an even more awkward situation, being in Dante’s presence, for the remainder of the day. 

“Umm…” You hesitate, still not moving from your spot just inside the door. 

“If you got a question babe then just ask. I don’t bite, unless you want me to and you’ve been very naughty.” 

You do your best to ignore his perverted remark. “I live here so I have a room right?” 

Dante pauses, hand inches from the phone. When he turns to face you his eyes lock with yours. Even at this distance you can see the mix of emotions; sorrow, surprise and something else, regret perhaps? Whatever it was in those baby blue eyes of his he is quick to brush it off. 

“I make that poor of company huh?”

“That’s not-“

“Relax babe, I’m not that easy to offend.” He offers a reassuring smile. “Upstairs, second door on the left.”

“Thank you.” You attempt a small smile in return but it doesn’t quite make it. As you climb the stairs you can hear Dante ordering pizza and stressing that he doesn’t want olives on it. The door at the top of the steps leads into a dimly lit hallway. At the far end sits a small window which helps the lighting. There are two doors on the right and two on the left staggered so that none are across from another. 

The first door is on the left, followed by one on the right before another on the left. You don’t hesitate to open the door, happy that you will finally get some space and time to yourself. The room is simple, unlike your fancier one at the hotel. There is a dresser with a small mirror above it on the wall, a double bed that is neatly made with heavy winter blankets, a nightstand resting next to the bed with a lamp on it and a window across from the door. 

Closing the door behind you, you make your way over to the window. Clearing the fog off the window with your shirt sleeve you look out to find that you are looking out onto a street. It’s not the best view, some of it is blocked by neighboring buildings, but it’s better than no window at all. 

You retreat to the bed and collapse on its edge, your mind relieved to be alone yet unable to stop the countless questions that are racing through it. With luck, you’ll wake up before the pizza gets here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it turns out that all I needed to get back into my writing muse is to be reminded of how fricking awesome my two favorite devils are. :3
> 
> Going from a fancy hotel to living at Devils Never Cry? That's a big change. At least there's pizza right? Pizza makes everything better so long as there aren't any olives. (:
> 
> Also, just a reminder that Dante is very fricking hard for me to write so pretty please with strawberries on top let me know how I'm doing or if you have any tips or insight on how to make it easier for me. (or things to keep in mind when writing him) Anything at all to help me grow as an author would be much appreciated! :D
> 
> Thanks guys!  
> -Seif


	6. ...And Back Again

The Reality Of Dreams  
Chapter 6: …And Back Again  
__  
“What do you mean by that?” Said the Caterpillar. “Explain yourself!”  
“I can’t explain myself, I’m afraid sir.” Said Alice. “Because I am not myself you see.”  
“I don’t see.” Said the Caterpillar. 

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You’re not sure how long you’ve hidden yourself away in your room. Then again you don’t really care. You decided to stay in your room until you wake up from this horrid nightmare. Unfortunately, that was taking a lot longer then you prefer. There is no clock in your room but judging by the sun its sometime past noon. There are few things to keep you entertained in your room. No T.V, computer or games. The only thing you spot that may pass a time are books that you discovered stacked up on the floor next to your dresser. But entertainment isn’t really something that you are seeking right now. All you want is to wake up so you can forget all about this nightmare. 

Downstairs, you can hear music echoing throughout the building. It seems that the abused jukebox you had spotted really does still work. You’re grateful that Dante has kept to downstairs. Perhaps he figures that you fell asleep or just knows that you need some space right now. If you truly had lived here and these men claim to know you as well as and as long as they say then they must have been your friends. Which makes you wonder; perhaps this is just as hard on Dante as it is on you.

If one day Lilly woke up from a coma and had no memory of who in the world you are it would be hard to handle. You would want to comfort and reassure her but that would only cause her more fear and stress. Is that why Dante looked saddened when you asked him if you had a room? Because he expected you to just know something like that and had forgotten that you have no memories of this place. 

If this is just a dream then why do you feel guilty for avoiding him? A heavy sigh leaves your lips and you stand from your resting place on the bed. You make your way over to the door and head out into the hall. The pizza should be here anytime, you might as well attempt some sort of conversation with him while you wait. Even in this nightmare perhaps getting to know him a little bit will make you feel less awkward around him. 

The steps creak as you descend them into the office area. You can feel his eyes watch you as you cross the room to sit on the couch. Chancing a glance up you find him sitting behind the messy desk, arms behind his head and feet kicked up resting on the very edge of the desk. 

This seemed like a decent idea at the time, but now you want nothing more than to retreat back up to your room. Unconsciously your wrap your arms around yourself as the nerves and tension start to build. Why is this so hard for you? This is only a dream so who cares what happens. If you do something to anger him or embarrass yourself then you will just wake up and that will be that. 

“So, um…” You search your mind for the mental list of questions that you came up with to ask him. “Do I have a job or work anywhere? Please tell me that I’m not an exterminator too, no offence.”

Dante’s laugh echoes throughout the room and he takes his eyes off of you when closes them lazily much to your relief. You discovered that his gaze, when focused on you, is immensely intimidating. 

“Your hot ass wiping out the nasties? Now that’s an image I can use on lonely nights.” Dante grins. “You haven’t had a job since you moved in with us.”

“How long ago was that again?” You frown. 

“Three years ago. Your sister stopped in one day and all but threatened for you to cut off certain parts of our anatomy if we didn’t finally ask you to move in.”

Your brows scrunch together with confusion. Again the sister that you never had is mentioned but you decide to play along for now. “Why would she do that?”

As if caught off guard, one of Dante’s baby blues opens and glances over towards your bewildered form. “You really don’t remember us.” 

It’s not a question.

The suddenly tense atmosphere is broken when there’s a knock at the door before it opens. A teenage boy walks in holding a large pizza. “Delivery for Dante?” 

Dante’s eyes hesitate on you before they shift to the pizza boy. Standing, he makes his way over to the boy. “There better not be any olives on it this time.” 

“No sir.” The boy confirms handing Dante the box.

“Just put the bill on my tab.”

“Sorry sir, Moe stressed to me that he’s cutting you off unless you pay upfront.” 

“Tell him that he’ll have his money by the end of the week.” Dante mutters.

The poor boy, not having many other options leaves with a heavy sigh to confront his boss who will no doubt be frustrated with Dante’s growing unpaid bills. Tossing the box onto of a pile of empty ones on his desk, Dante flips open the lid. A scowl crosses his features. 

“Told the damn kid no olives. They expect me to pay when they can’t even get that right.” 

Minutes of silence pass by. Dante is once again seated behind his desk and you munch on a slice of pizza from your perch on the uncomfortable lumpy couch. Licking tomato sauce off of his fingers, Dante breaks the silence. 

“If you don’t remember us then we’ll just have to jog your memory.” His blue orbs, so intense and determined as they stare into your own leave you speechless. Within your chest, you feel your heart skip a beat. Exactly who is this man? That question repeats in your mind over and over again. 

You feel you lose yourself in his gaze, only brought out of it when the front doors open before shutting closed. You turn to look and your heart beats faster for an entirely different reason. The small amount of nervousness that had you had managed to loose talking to Dante returns tenfold. Quickly, you avert your eyes to your lap and finish the few bites left of your slice, needed something, anything to distract you so that you don’t have to look at him. 

“Make us any money big bro?” Dante’s question goes unanswered. 

You may not be looking at him to see it, but you don’t have to be. You can _feel_ the new set of pale blue eyes locked onto your form. It takes all of your will power to keep your body from trembling with fear. You take back what you said about Dante’s gaze being intimidating because Vergil’s eye on you make you wish you could melt into a puddle and drip between the floorboards. 

You chance a quick glance up and immediately regret doing so. His face is void of any emotions whatsoever but it’s his eyes that seem to stare straight into your very soul that stops your heart completely. Dante, you can at least tolerate being around but Vergil, you feel like you’re going to be crushed under the sheer weight of his presence. 

Mind frantic, you stand and retreat back upstairs, feeling their eyes on you the whole way. Sure you just made your fear very obvious and ran away with your tail between your legs but at least you are away from him. Tucked away in the upstairs you pause at your just outside your door hearing them talk but not able to make it out. Quietly you tiptoe back down the hall and press an ear on the door at the top of the steps. 

“If you ever needed proof that you need to work on your people skills, you just witnessed it.” Dante’s voice carries. 

Vergil doesn’t answer, instead you hear floorboards creak and you imagine him moving about seeing as Dante looked quite content in his chair. 

“You know on the ride here she swore that I was kidnaping her? I get that she has amnesia. Giving her directions to her own room is one thing, but us? She has no clue who we are; what we are.”

“Give her time.” Vergil’s voice is void of all warmth and the mere sound of it sends a shiver down your spine. 

“You think she’ll remember.”

“She found us once.”

There is a long pause before Dante replies. “For once V, I hope you’re right about this.”

As quietly as you possibly can, you head back to your room, shutting the door behind you. It maybe evening, the sunlight still shining in through your snow covered window, but you find yourself exhausted both mentally and physically. You collapse onto the bed, not bothering to change into something more comfortable. It would feel weird to go through the dresser drawers and change into anything that sits inside. They may claim that this is your room, full of your things, but to you it feels more like living in a strangers room and changing into someone else’s clothing is not something you want to deal with right now. Besides, this is only a dream so what’s the point of changing. 

Your breath settles into a steady pace and your mind slowly drifts into unconsciousness. However, right before you lose yourself to sleep entirely, you are vaguely aware of your door opening before warmth settles over your body, shielding it from the winter air. The last thing your mind registers is the slightest smell of mint.

Lazily, your eyes flutter open. It takes a few moments of staring at your alarm clock to realize that you finally woke up from the nightmare. You sit up in bed, grateful to be back in your actual room at the hotel. A sudden thought crosses your mind. It’s stupid and foolish, but why the hell not? Climbing out of bed you grab your laptop off your desk and turn it on. Google knows all right? You fill the search bar with ‘Devils Never Cry’ and hit the go button. The only thing that comes up is some religious sites. Going back up to the search you add the word ‘exterminator’ at the end. Aside from Rolf’s Bug Be-Gone service you find nothing of interest. You lean back from your place on your bed surprised to find yourself relieved. Nothing about white haired twin brothers. 

You go to turn your laptop off and leave the thought of your dreams alone but last minute another thought pops into your mind. Re-opening good ol Google, you search ‘Elanay City’. Your eyes widen with surprise when a pin drops down on a map. You stare at the map in disbelief. Sitting there all innocently, three hundred miles from your home, is Elanay City.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the start of my mass Halloween update as promised. More to come as the night goes on. Kinda busy at my house tonight handing out candy to little kids so I'm up every few minutes which makes posting these updates a little tricky. The rest may come later, but they will be up tonight.  
> I have another chapter of this story, an update for Beauty and the Devil as well as that surprise I mentioned. I really wanted to get more done and written up but unfortunately my medical conditions decided to be extra bitchy and to top it off I have a very weak immune system to the point where I am, quite literally, almost always sick. Just as I'm getting over one thing another pops up. Anywho, enough of my complaining, good or ill tonight is a night meant to be full of fright with endless dreams, forest filled monsters and tragic death. *hint hint at tonight's story line up*
> 
> Enjoy this update, and I shall see you very soon my friends with yet another chapter for you to feast your sweet tooth on. But will those chapters be sweet or frightful, that is the question for you to ponder. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! C:


	7. Meet and Greet

The Reality of Dreams  
Chapter 7: Meet and Greet

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“Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle.” –Lewis Carroll  


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Your day progresses like normal. You make your bed, get Tommy up and say farewell to your parents as they rush off to work. You do everything you can to keep mind distracted so that it won’t drift back to the nightmare you had last night. You make breakfast for yourself and Tommy then set about tidying up. However, your mind seems to be very rebellious for it keeps drifting back to your dream. You find that you start to compare your nice clean home to the filthy office. You start to wonder, if the city is real, then are they? If Dante and Vergil do really exist then would they recognize you? 

You shake the thought out of your head. No, this is completely stupid. It was just a ridiculous dream, nothing more. That should be the end of it. It _should_ be the end of it. Yet it’s not. You find yourself getting more and more frustrated as the day goes on. Desperate to rid your mind of the nonsense, you grab an old notebook, open it to a blank page and start writing down your dream. However your hope of it vanishing if you put it down on paper is shattered an hour later while you are watching T.V and a hospital soap opera flashes on the screen while flipping through the channels. It must have looked funny to passerby’s seeing Dante and Vergil walk thought the hospital to your room. You wouldn’t be surprised if someone dropped dead just because Vergil walked past them. 

By the time night hits you’ve made up your mind. This is probably the stupidest thing you will ever do but you are desperate. You check the week’s weather report to find the best day to plan this on. Being the middle of winter and a long drive, snow will be your enemy. Much to your disappointment heavy snow fall is expected going into next week which means that your plan for going on a trip to Elanay City will have to wait. 

A glance at the clock tells you that you should be in bed. It is late and your head hurts with confusing twisting thoughts. You stand from your perch on the living room couch, turn the T.V off and head upstairs to your room. You quietly change into your sleep clothes. Sleep eludes you, your mind to awake to fall asleep. What seems like hours pass by but finally you drift off. 

 

When your eyes open to reveal a simple room, an annoyed groan passes your lips. Nope, you are _so_ not having this again. Not again. Not this complete bullshit. You roll over and pull the thick blanket over your head and attempt to fall back asleep- or wake up as the case may be. Unfortunately your full bladder and empty stomach demand otherwise. Irritated, you sit up. Anger rises up within you and you have had more than enough of this damn nightmare. Grabbing ahold of your pillow you throw it across the room. It hits the mirror hanging on the wall before falling on top of the dresser. Sure, it’s a childish temper tantrum, but right now you could care less. 

Getting up you head to the dresser and pull open a drawer after tossing the pillow back onto the bed. Dante did say that this was your room so you can only assume that these really are your clothes. Still it doesn’t lessen the feeling that you’re snooping though someone else’s things. You pick out a set of clean clothes and quickly strip to change. As you slide on the clean shirt you had picked out you notice something that causes you to pause. 

A scar is etched into the skin on your abdomen. You don’t have any scars, much less one there; if you did then you’re fairly certain you would remember what caused it. It’s not subtle nor is it faded, but rather stands out against your flesh. You run your fingers over the imperfection curiously. It’s jagged and while not very long it is decently wide. Curiosity has you turn your bare back to the mirror. Glancing over your shoulder to gaze into the mirror much to your surprise the scar has a twin on your back. Whatever had made such an ugly mark had gone all the way through. 

You take note of it to remember to ask Dante for more information about this accident you were supposedly in. Once dressed in clean clothes, you fold your old ones and neatly place them in a small pile on the dresser. You fix your hair the best you can before making your way out the door and into the hallway. At the end of the hallway, you hesitate; anger residing, your nerves taking its place. The building is quiet which could mean that they may yet be asleep or went to work for the day. Or, knowing your luck, they could be downstairs.

Dante you can handle. It’s awkward around him and uncomfortable, yes, but he doesn’t scare you. Best case scenario is that they are gone. You can go about your business and get more familiar with the building you find yourself living in without having eyes on you. Worst case scenario, Vergil is downstairs. You honestly have no idea what you will do if that is deemed to be true. You don’t like him, he completely horrifies you and with your hasty retreat yesterday, he now knows it. 

With a deep breath, you grab the door handle and push it open as quietly as you can. Peaking down the stairs you find that the office is empty. You release a breath that you hadn’t even realized you had been holding. Still as quiet as you can, in case they are in a different room or still sleeping, you descend the stairs. A few of the steps creak and moan with the addition of your weight, a sound that seems louder then it most likely actually is in the quiet stillness of the office. 

Food is the first thing on your list simply because you believe you know where the kitchen is, having seen a small peak of it though the door next to the clean desk when you got here. You aren’t really surprised when you discover the kitchen to be in the same shape as the rest of the place. It’s worn, cracked, and chipped, yes, but there’s no mountain of dishes in the sink or an overflowing trashcan. In fact, both are empty and void of any mess. So in that respect you guess it’s not quite as bad as you thought it would be. 

Reaching up to open the cupboards, you frown when you only find cobwebs and moldy bread. Your attention turns to the only other place where breakfast maybe, the discolored refrigerator. A frown grows on your lips. Sure, you maybe weird for going though someone else’s kitchen without permission but who’s the really weird one. Seriously how is the only thing edible in this place leftover pizza and beer? 

You shut the fridge door harder than necessary in your frustration. Normally it wouldn’t be that much of a big deal. The city maybe foreign to you but a grocery store should be easy to find. The problem arises with your lack of money. No money means no food for you. Sure, there’s a small chance that if you asked Dante he may lend some to you so you can get a cheap breakfast somewhere. However two things ruin that idea. You have no idea where Dante is at the moment and you would feel to strange asking someone you don’t know for money when he can’t even pay his pizza tab. 

Pushing food out of your mind you go to the next thing on your mental list. Finding the bathroom. You leave the kitchen disappointed and re-enter the still vacant office. The only other door aside from the ones upstairs is the one next to Dante’s desk. Walking over to it, you pull open the door happy when you find what you were looking for. The tiles on the wall are either cracked, chipped, missing or a combination of the three. Everything seems dingy or perhaps it’s just the poor lighting. Like the kitchen, while everything is beaten up and looks ready to break, there is a surprisingly lack of mess and clutter. No dirty clothes or towels. The trash matches the one in the kitchen, empty. 

Making sure the lock on the door works after an image of one of them walking in on you crosses your mind, you relieve your bladder. The shower looks appealing, after all you don’t know the last time you actually had one. Saying heck with it all, you strip and step inside. The missing shower curtain makes the process of cleaning yourself seem out of place with the lack of privacy, locked door or not. What soaps and shampoo’s belong to the twins you don’t know however you figure that neither of them would enjoy smelling like ‘everlasting sunshine’. 

Once clean you turn the water off and look for a clean towel not caring at this point whose it is. Once you’re re-dressed you comb out your hair as best as you can with your fingers. Refreshed, you leave the bathroom to readdress your breakfast issue. 

Before you can make it back to the kitchen the front door opens gaining your attention. For one fearful moment your mind goes to the thought of it being Vergil returning. The notion of being completely alone with him sends a visible shiver through you. The sound of heels clicking along the wooden planks is quick to calm that worry. You turn to find a woman smiling at you. Dressed in black leather, and a corset with long flowing blonde hair you can imagine someone like her being with Dante. They just seem the type. 

She walks right up to you, smile never wavering and embraces you in a light hug. And you thought you were confused before. Feeling you tense, she pulls back giving you some space. 

“Uhm…who are you?” Your brows scrunch together with complete and utter confusion. 

A puzzled look crosses her face and she opens her mouth to say something but is quick to close it again. Her face smooths back out and her smile reappears. 

“Sorry about that, they said that you didn’t remember anything but I just figured they were being dramatic." She holds out a hand to you. “I’m a friend, name’s Trish.”

You shake her hand and offer a small smile of your own. “With everything going on, I could use a friend.” 

“The boys asked me to check in on you.” She admits. “If you need anything all you have to do is ask.”

Trish is like a glass of water in a desert; exactly what you need right now, a friend. There is no tension or awkwardness and she friendly not intimidating. You find yourself relaxed around her. 

“There is one thing.” You confess. “Only thing to eat is left over pizza.”

“Figures. You can blame Dante for that. Come on,” She motions to the front door. “Breakfast is on me.”

“Are you sure?” You hesitate. 

“There’s nothing good here right? Besides it may do you some good to get out of this place for a bit and we can get to know each other again.”

Trish’s words put your doubts to rest. You pull on your coat that you had taken off and left on the couch yesterday before following her out the door. 

It’s cold out, which is a given seeing as it’s the middle of winter. Which only makes you wonder even more. Dressed in a corset, isn’t Trish freezing? Yet she doesn’t seem bothered by the chilled air in the least bit. 

The sidewalks are all but empty of people not daring to brave the cold. “Where are we going?”

“Don’t worry, you’ll like it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> #2 for my mass Halloween update. Enjoy~ :D


	8. Girls Day Out

The Reality of Dreams  
Chapter 8: Girls Day Out

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“That's the reason they're called lessons," the Gryphon remarked: "because they lessen from day to day.” (Alice in Wonderland)  


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Trish had led you through the city a short ways to a small family friendly dinner dubbed ‘Freddy’s’. Much to your relief the place isn’t crowded and the two of you find a spot seated in a booth not too far from the door. After looking over the menu, orders are placed leaving you and Trish time to talk in peace before your food arrives. 

“So you know Dante?” You know it’s a stupid question. Of course she does, she’s said as much already, but you need someplace to start and who knows maybe you can find out some more information about the unusual brothers.

“I’ve known both of them for years. Used to work with them a lot but went into business for myself a few years back. Still, I bring them work when business is low and help out on bigger jobs, for a small fee.” If Trish is put off about your dumb question then she makes no show of it. “They both can be difficult in their own ways and can be hard to deal with at times, but they mean well. I know you don’t remember them but trust me when I tell you that you’re in good hands with them.”

Trish’s words help to chase away some of your insecurities. The way she spoke, like she has no doubt in her mind that they won’t let any harm come to you. As encouraging as it is, you still have your uncertainty. Dante, if you ignore the awkwardness between the two of you, you feel fairly comfortable around and are pretty sure that he wouldn’t intentionally hurt you. Yes it was weird asking him questions the other night and he even seemed put off about it at times, but he did answer you none the less. 

Vergil on the other hand is a whole different ballgame. In the hospital you didn’t pay him much attention. He had distanced himself and for the most part was quiet. With your mind in shambles back then you never noticed just how petrifyingly intimidating the man is. Not until he walked in the door last night. It took every ounce of your will power to sneak that small glance up at him, which you still regret doing. Everything about him is terrifying; from his gaze to his posture and his stride. Hell the very air around him sends shivers of fear down your spine. 

Perhaps if you actually knew something about him it would take at least some of your fear away? After all, you do live with _both_ of them and you won’t always be able to avoid the horrifying man so you’ll have to figure out a way to live in somewhat peace with him and not turn tail and run every time your paths cross. 

“What about his brother?” Asking Trish about Vergil is a lot easier than if you were to ask Dante. Plus if you questioned Dante about it you’d run the risk of Vergil walking in or hearing your awkward conversation and that would only make things worse for everyone. 

“Vergil? What about him?”

“Is he always…” You search for the right word to get your point across without sounding rude.

“Cold?” Trish fills in the blank herself. 

Okay not the exact word you would have used but it defiantly works. “He walked in the office last night. Didn’t say a word, just glared at me and I ran upstairs with my tail tucked. Did I do something to offend him or is he always so scary?” 

“Dante probably had fun with that.” Trish bursts out laughing gaining a few looks from people seated nearby. “Don’t worry about it too much, that’s just how he is. You didn’t do anything wrong and I can almost guarantee you that he wasn’t glaring. If he was, you would know it. Tell me, other than looking at you did he do anything?”

“No.”

“Then you have nothing to worry about.” Trish offers a reassuring smile just as your waitress sets down plates of food before the two of you. 

Trish had said you were in good hands. But she didn’t just include Dante into that statement. She said you were in good hands with _them_ , that they both mean well, which includes Vergil just as much as Dante. Looking back to your last encounter with him Trish is right, Vergil did nothing to you. Sure he scared the shit out of you to the point where you wanted to dig a hole to China and never look back. However, that was on you. Yes he is a very intimidating person to say the last, but he never wronged you. He didn’t threaten or hurt you; and according to Trish he didn’t even glare. He just walked in the office and looked at you. That was all and you retreated to your room terrified. For running away like a coward, the least you owe him is another chance. Perhaps if you actually try to get to know him he won’t seem so scary. 

With your new resolve set in your mind you start to dig into your breakfast. The least you can do is try. If it turns out he’s just as terrifying as he seems at first glance then you can avoid him like the plaque then, but trying comes first. Who knows, maybe he’s actually a really nice guy.

“So, the boys aside, how are you? You were just released from the hospital yesterday; how are you feeling?” 

“Honestly? I have no clue. There’s so much to take in and figure out. It’s like a game of connect the dots but none of the dots are numbered so figuring out what the picture is feels almost impossible.” You answer truthfully. “It’s all so overwhelming and I feel like I’m just making it all up as I go.” 

A troubled frown paints itself of Trish’s lips. “If there’s any way I can help at all just say the word. I’ll answer any questions you may have or think of later on or if you need anything at all. Day or night, I’m just a phone call away.”

“Thank you Trish. I may not remember you, but I want to because you’re a good friend.” 

Time passes as you both enjoy your meals and a thought occurs to you. You feel guilty asking considering you don’t have any money but what other choices do you have?

“Hey Trish, there is one thing, though I feel kind of bad asking,” 

“Just name it.” She said encouragingly.

“The only food at the office are three slices of left over pizza so I was wondering if-“

“Those idiots, I thought I told them to go shopping for when you come home. Then again, when have they ever listened, so I guess that one is on me.” Trish sighs.

“I don’t have any money but I’ll pay you back somehow.” 

“Apparently you don’t listen either. I told you already not to worry about it. When we’re done here we’ll had to the store to pick up whatever you need. Let me worry about the money.”

“Thank you Trish, really.” You offer a smile before getting back to your breakfast.

 

An hour later you round the corner with bags loaded into both yours and Trish’s arms. Devils Never Cry looks just as run down as it did the first time you set eyes onto it, and you doubt you’ll ever feel comfortable staying at it, but you don’t exactly have many other options at the moment. Besides, this is only a dream so what does it matter anyways. One night you’ll fall asleep and won’t wake up in this nightmare. It’s only a matter of time. Until then you might as well make the best of things, nightmare or not. 

Trish kicks the door open since neither of you have any free hands. You doubt that you’ll ever get used to the smell that lingers in the office; or the dirt and dust. This place will always be uncomfortable. Just like when you had woken up, the building is silent and still. They wouldn’t still be asleep at this time so you assume that they must be out working or doing who knows what. 

Following Trish into the kitchen, the bags are quickly dumped onto the counter. A sudden chime echoes thought the room and Trish is quick to pull a phone out from between her boobs. She doesn’t say much to whomever is on the other side of the line aside a variety of ‘yes’s and ‘no’s before hanging up and placing her phone snugly back within her top. In the other room you hear the door being shut signaling the arrival of one of the brothers.

“Business calls it seems. I got to go.” Trish explains. “And it sounds like someone is home. Just keep in mind what I told you.” 

With that, Trish heads out of the kitchen into the main office. You hear her talk to whomever walked in but all you can make out of the one sided conversation is “…Just go easy on her.” 

You really don’t want to think of who it might be, but from what you know of the brothers so far, if it were Dante it wouldn’t be this quiet. Pushing the thought from your mind the best you can, you set about putting the groceries away. You don’t know if the twins have a specific place for things to go but the way you see it, if they can’t keep their cupboards stocked and you have to go out and buy the food then where ever you decide to store it is good enough. 

Your ears strain as you continue to put things away, listening for any sound or noise from the other room. It has been dead silent since Trish’s departure and you’re beginning to wonder if perhaps he left with her. Slowly and gradually you find yourself starting to relax. If you weren’t alone then surly he would have found you by now, right? Or the very least he would have made some sort of noise. 

You find a decent sized bowl, set it on the countertop and start to stack apples into it. You mind drifts. What are you doing? What’s the point of putting groceries away? This is just a nightmare, a weird ass nightmare. Nothing more than a figment of your imagination that your subconscious concocts while you sleep. There has to be some rational explanation as to why you keep experiencing the same nightmare each night that takes up the next day as the last. 

You break away from your thoughts when you lose your grip on one of the apples. The round fruit falls from your hand where it hits the floor with a quiet thud before rolling across the room. You scold yourself for your clumsiness and go to retrieve it. Bending down to reach for it a startled yelp leaves you and you stumble back a few steps where you end up falling flat on your butt. 

You sit there on the floor, body shaking with fear, staring up wide-eyed at the one person you had hoped to avoid forever. For his part, Vergil simply stares down at you, expression unreadable, with the apple gripped in his hand. 

“You fear me.” It’s not a question. 

You find that your voice has run away and no words will leave your quivering lips. Trish’s words seem to have gone out the window. Even reminding yourself that he has done nothing to you seems to fall flat when you are actually face to face with the intimidating man standing before you. It may help if you could somehow get a read on him; figure out what he’s thinking or what mood he’s in, but you might as well be trying to read the mind of a rock. Those piercing blue eyes stare into your very soul, like he knows your every thought before you yourself think them. 

It is you that breaks away from his soul stealing stare when it becomes too much to handle, immediately finding the worn wooden floor immensely more interesting. Out of the corner of your eye you catch movement and realize that Vergil is walking past you towards the counter where the apple’s companions sit in the bowl. How can _anyone_ walk that quietly?! He’s walking on old wooden flooring with boots on for crying out loud. Yet not even straining your ears you can’t catch even the slightest of sounds. 

Once the runaway apple is back with the others Vergil’s boots make an appearance right in front of you. You don’t look up. You are too scared to discover what you will see if you do so. Is he upset? Does he think you’re a coward? What if he’s _glad_ you are so terrified of him? This time not even Dante is here as a comfort to you. Trish had said you were safe with them both, which includes Vergil, yet you can easily picture the horrifying man towering above you ready to kill you and walk away like nothing leaving Dante to find your body. Or worse, what if he doesn’t kill you? What if he tortures you? Perhaps they really are kidnappers and belong to some mafia type shit. Oh hell, you are so screwed. Why is he still just standing there? You chant over and over in your head for him to just please go away. 

Just as a whimper is about to leave your trembling body a gloved hand enters your field of vision. You stare at the offered hand for a few seconds before daring to follow it up to its owner. Vergil’s face is still unreadable- emotionless, but like every encounter you have ever had with the man clad in blue, his eyes are locked onto you unwavering. 

Taking a deep breath and hoping it’s not obvious, you place your shaky hand in his own. Much to your surprise his fingers are warm as his hand grips your own. You had expected that they would be cooler, matching the cold appearance of their owner. Vergil easily pulls you from the floor. His hand remains on your own for a few seconds to help steady you. When he does pull away his fingers oh-so lightly graze along your hand. A touch that, as simple as it is, is intentional. 

You don’t have long to ponder on it however because you very quickly realize how close you are standing to him. Inches. You breathe in the smell of leather, man and a hint of mint of all things. Your eyes focus on the red and gold amulet resting on his chest gleaming in the dim kitchen light. If memory serves you right, Dante had one almost identical to it, though silver instead of gold. 

After what feels like minutes tick by Vergil finally turns and heads to the door leading back into the office area. However he pauses just before he reaches the door and glances over his shoulder.

“There is no need.” 

With that Vergil disappears into the other room leaving you standing there staring wide-eyed at the doorway. Your heart races in your chest while your mind is trying to comprehend how you are still alive and breathing after such a terrifying encounter. Despite how scared you are, you realize something through your fear. At some point you had stopped trembling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is part of my mass Halloween update. Sorry it's a little late, unexpected things popped up in my life. Still have chapter 7 of Beauty And The Devil to post, but will most likely be doing so either tomorrow or the next day. Thank you for being patent with me.


	9. Making Connections

The Reality of Dreams  
Chapter 9: Making Connections

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“Curiosity often leads to trouble.” -Alice (Alice in Wonderland)  


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Nothing. Not a single damn thing. You close your laptop at the same time a frustrated growl leaves you. That same nightmare that always picks up the next day has been haunting your sleep for a week straight now. You had hoped to find something, anything, on the internet. What that something you are searching for is you aren’t exactly sure of. You just want something to reassure yourself that you aren’t going completely crazy. After all having the same nightmare for a whole week straight isn’t normal right? It’s never happened to you before at least. Nor have you ever heard it happening to someone else. 

Standing from the couch you abandon your search for answers to find some dinner. Your feet tap softly against the heated polished marble tiles beneath them. Leaving the living room you make your way into the kitchen. The rest of the building is quiet with your parents both still off at work and Tom upstairs playing video games in his room. You’re thankful for the peace and the time it allows you to think. 

Digging out leftover pasta from the refrigerator you pile it on a plate before popping it into the microwave, setting the time and hitting start. The metal box buzzes to life, heating up your dinner. 

Since your encounter with Vergil in the kitchen you’ve become more comfortable at the shop if only slightly. Neither one of the twins have turned out to be serial killers and tried to kill you yet so that’s a plus. You still try to avoid Vergil and stay out of his way as much as you can, but at least now when you can’t you are able to handle your fear of him better. Having Dante in the room if Vergil is around is comforting and much easier to deal with both of them. They usually argue and try to outsmart each other within a few minutes so awkward silence of not knowing what to do or say is less of an issue. There is less tension between you and Dante when you’re left alone with him and you find that he has easy ways of making you smile and laugh. Both of them are getting used to you not remembering anything and have taken to explaining some things, often before you even ask. 

You had gone back to see Doctor Kodaav for check-ups three times since you got out of the hospital and your strength is starting to return. You find that you can do more without getting as tired, which will come in handy with what you have planned should the nightmare appear yet again tonight. 

You jump, surprised, when the microwave beeps and announces that your food is hot. Grabbing your plate and locating a fork, you make your way back into the living room. Plopping back down on the couch you reopen your laptop and click over to the map that you had saved. 

Elanay City. 

It almost seems to be mocking you, sitting there on your computer screen. How can a city you’ve never heard of before let alone knew that it even existed be the center of your recurring nightmares? It seems to odd to be a coincidence. Unless you heard of it before and never really knew it. Maybe there was a story on the news about it or in the paper and your subconscious just picked it up and decided that it would be a perfect home for your nightmare. Even still you would like some evidence that you’re not going completely insane. That what’s happening is just bad luck and one night you’ll go to sleep and have a normal dream. Maybe one with muffins. Muffins are good. 

A thought crosses your mind. You may not be able to find anything about a shop called Devils Never Cry but the city is real so perhaps there’s a chance that something else in it is real as well. Like the hospital maybe. At this point you’re not expecting anything, after all it’s just from some stupid dream you keep having. It’s not real and you feel silly for even thinking it might be. 

Yet despite how you feel you type in it’s name. Your plate of pasta tumbles to the floor with a clatter but you don’t even notice. Your eyes are too focused on the screen, not believing what they’re telling you. 

Gatewell Hospital, Elanay City.

It truly is real. Both of them are. Encouraged, you swiftly look up Doctor Kodaav. Sure enough, he works there in neurology. This isn’t real. No way can this be real. The city, the hospital, even the damn doctor. They all actually exist. What if Devils Never Cry exists too? Perhaps there just isn’t anything on the internet about it. And if the shop is real then are also Dante and Vergil? 

There is one way to find out. A seven and a half hour drive from your home here in Tursley City all the way to Elanay isn’t exactly appealing especially with how poor the weather conditions have been lately. Until the weather does improve you’ll just have to go with the flow of things. Who knows, maybe this whole stupid dream thing will have passed by then and there will be no need to go on the long trip at all. 

Turning your laptop off you place it on the end table. The floor at your feet is littered with the remains of your dinner. With luck the sauce won’t stain the expensive imported rug. You herd the noodles back onto the plate and locate the fork under the end table. Avoiding stepping in the remains of the mess you make your way back into the kitchen. The ruined pasta is scraped off into the trash and the plate and fork are placed in the dishwasher. You find a sponge and head back to the living room to finish cleaning up the mess you made in your surprise. 

Mess cleaned up a yawn leaves you. It’s not that late but curiosity entices you. Will you have the same dream yet again tonight? Will this be the time where the nightmare ends? Can you even still call it a nightmare? Yes it is scary knowing that your family is dead in it and living with Dante and Vergil isn’t exactly a dream come true, however you have never been harmed nor has anything ever tried to hurt you in them. There are worse things that deserve the title of ‘nightmare’ more than where your mind takes you each night. Yes, it’s odd there but really it is like a normal life. The brothers both work jobs, runs to the grocery store are made now and then, dollars are squeezed to get bills paid and all the while you try to find clues on if what they say is true. If you really had a life there before the hospital. It is an odd thing to seek considering it’s just a dream, but regardless you are driven to it. Perhaps to help prove that it is in fact just a dream when it seems so incredibly real. No, nightmare isn’t really a word to describe it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is LONG overdue. ^_^;  
> I know this chapter is short (about half of what I normally post) however I did this for a good reason.


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